The Founder Initiative

0-600 Customers: How Dan Bladen, Hit PMF After A Massive Pivot - and Landed Intel & Porsche

Episode Summary

🤔 VCs not responding to you? I’ll review your deck & send you a detailed video with my actionable recommendations: Submit here: https://bit.ly/44z2vj8 FOUNDER Dan Bladen, CEO, Kadence - https://www.linkedin.com/in/danbladen/ Kadence - https://kadence.co/ DESCRIPTION After building hardware, Dan Bladen's (https://www.linkedin.com/in/danbladen/) startup faced a COVID‑driven collapse—and he made a bold pivot from wireless chargers to hybrid‑work SaaS, ultimately winning 600 customers. This episode breaks down the faith‑driven decisions, gut‑based validation, and lean product‑market approach that led to landing companies like Intel and Porsche. Great for founders seeking real‑world lessons on overcoming crisis and finding product‑market fit. TIMESTAMP 01:15 – From theology to tech: embracing risk 02:05 – Spark in Delhi Starbucks → birth of idea 03:00 – Pastor’s “pedal-by-pedal” faith metaphor 04:30 – COVID crisis: choosing relationships over contracts 05:45 – Pivot moment: hybrid workplace SaaS opportunity 07:20 – First customer win: realizing product–market fit